Jason and Jessie in the shop: greasing Prayer wheel motor parts for assembly

Andre on the puncher: Fabricating steel structure for Prayer Wheels.

Prayer Wheels going up! John and Josh on installation.

Planting our own starts in the Odiyan garden.

Pruning orchards in early winter.

Kaspar in front of the Main Temple at Odiyan.

Havesting near Vajra Temple in the Fall.

Caring for our Kiger mustangs.

Maintenance work at the temples all year round.

Odiyan Buddhist Center set on one thousand acres in Northern CA.

Harvesting in the south garden.

Enjoying quiet and beauty near the reservoir in summer.

Meditation practice.

Odiyan Kitchen work.

Thanksgiving dinner at Odiyan.

Odiyan Buddhist center overlooking the Pacific Ocean

A community dedicated to spiritual development and rigorous, creative hands-on work.

All-volunteer non-profit Buddhist center on 1000 acres, north coast of California. Founded in 1975, Odiyan supports Buddhist centers throughout Asia by producing sacred Buddhist art and books given away freely every year. Odiyan simultaneously functions as a lay (non-ordained) Buddhist community dedicated to meaningful work, wholesome living and the development of mind and spirit.

About Odiyan Buddhist Center

Founded in 1975 by Venerable Tarthang Tulku Rinpoche, Odiyan is located on a 1000-acre spiritual and ecological preserve overlooking the Pacific Ocean in rural Northern California. Odiyan is open to applicants who want to live and work with us for at least six months. For those who find the Odiyan way of life a good match, long term residency is a future option.

Odiyan's mission is establishing a home for the Dharma in the West and to support Buddhist centers and practitioners in Asia. The way of life that supports this purpose integrates creative and challenging work with a path of self-exploration that opens up your inner potential. Living at Odiyan is an opportunity to work for preserving enlightened knowledge for our world, and fostering harmony for oneself, our planet and all beings.

The Employee Experience

The Place Photographs and words cannot convey the vast and expansive sacred beauty of Odiyan. Perched on a ridge above the Pacific Ocean on land sacred to the original peoples of the area, Odiyan is an ecological and spiritual sanctuary. There are infinite sight lines in every direction with varied landscapes of hills, ponds, gardens, and forests, five large Temples with temple gardens, wild horses, and many varieteis of native and domesticated birds. Thousands of flowers, flowering bushes and trees have been planted over the past forty years making every day a feast for the senses.

The Work Odiyan was built entirely by volunteers and our work continues to develop Odiyan and also supports many Buddhist centera throughout Asia. Using work as a means for self-development encourages mindfulness, the ability to overcome obstacles and gives flexibility. Opportunities abound for changing self-limiting patterns of mind.

The Food Everyone has their time in the kitchen to cook mostly home-grown and organic meals for the community. You can learn how to bake your own bread, make your own miso and tempeh, freeze, can and preserve a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, and herbs, both cultivated and wild grown.

"Being at Odiyan is like going to school and taking a class in “How to do everything.” The variety of projects done here and the breadth of technical experience available make Odiyan incomparable to most other work situations. Where else can you learn every type of construction, from foundation to roofing, electrical to structural steel, all types landscaping from ornamental to vegetables, drainage to large-scale waterworks, all types of machine and engine repair, solar energy, fine woodwork, bronze casting, electroplating, and much, much more, all in one place? The fact that all this knowledge is offered for free, including three meals a day and a room to stay, is astonishing. People have come to Odiyan with no training whatsoever, and after working hard for some years, they gained enough skills to make a living for themselves for the rest of their lives. If this all happened in a downtown warehouse, it would be a good deal, but it is happening on a gorgeous ridge overlooking the Pacific Ocean, surrounded by Buddhist sacred art, with a community of people who are working towards an understanding of mind and human potential. It is far above and beyond a 'good deal'. – James, 28

Ideal Candidate

We are seeking people who seriously like to work andare also interested in developing a spiritual path. Living and working at Odiyan is challenging both in the work schedule and in living and working with the same small group of people day- to- day. The successful Odiyan resident needs to be independent socially and at work, and at the same time able to cooperate and engage in the concerns of the community.

Unlike a job that quits at 5 pm, living and working at Odiyan is a lifestyle which includes everything it takes to live and be successful in the world: taking care of yourself, your home and your natural environment, learning and sharing practical job skills, and developing a larger vision of purpose.

Attributes for success at Odiyan include:

mental and emotional stability

physical strength to be on your feet all day engaging manual labor

ability to communicate in group settings such as work or community meetings

flexibility to change jobs or tasks at short notice

interest in Buddhism and inner development which includes reading books by founder Tarthang Tulku, attending classes and discussion groups

being able to take responsibility independently for work tasks or community needs

Minimum age 23.

Room and Board

Mostly organic vegetarian meals are served every day for all residents. Everyone takes turns in meal preparation and clean-up.

Residential rooms are designed for 2 people per room although you may also have a room to yourself for some part of your time, depending on the number of volunteers in residence.

Longer term residents (9 months to one year or more) usually have their own room.

Opportunity to engage in a wholesome lifestyle of self-sufficiency, meaningful work, inner development, and taking responsibility

Living allowance, $100 per month after the first month, $150 per month after six months.

Getting Here and Getting Around

Information is provided upon acceptance for transportation options from nearby airports to Odiyan. You may bring your car but it is not necessary. We do not use bicycles at Odiyan.

For Fun

With 1000 acres of land to roam, we encourage our volunteers to stay close to home to enjoy the beauty and majesty of the Odiyan land. There is hiking the eight mile Pilgrimage Road in the Spring, swimming in the reservoir in the Summer, foraging in the forests in the Fall and enjoying the evenings at the huge fireplace in the dining room during the rains of winter. We have a herd of rescued semi-tame horses to visit on the land, two yaks, two aviaries and lots of wild life to observe and photograph. Fun at Odiyan means having your own side-project at the shop in metal, wood or fabric, working on your own art project, going down to the garden on Sunday to harvest just because you want to, and helping with all the drying, canning, freezing and preserving of fruits and veggies during harvest season. You can join in some of the Buddhist ceremonies and practices and the longer you stay the more you can participate. Being away from the city and on a high ridge, star gazing is a favorite activity.

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